Staff Conference Inspires and Acknowledges Excellence

10 November 2016: The ‘Saluting Excellence Staff Conference’ was a day of celebration and inspiration.

Held at the Fenix Restaurant, in a lovely location overlooking the Yarra River in Richmond, the conference brought together staff from all Vasey RSL Care sites, Board members, VIP guests from ex-service organisations and sponsors with close working relationships with the organisation.

The 2016 Saluting Excellence Awards were presented throughout the day, rewarding those staff members who exemplify excellence in their work. This year, 113 nominations were received, almost double the nominations received last year.

“Choosing just 28 winners from so many deserving nominees was a difficult task for the awards committee,” says Janna Voloshin, CEO.

Winners in the various categories were:

Excellence in Service Delivery:

• Sandra Butler, ANZAC Day Therapy Centre
• Neville Lin, ANZAC Hostel
• Mishelle Ansems, Central Office – Aged Care Services
• Nadia Wilson, Central Office – Aged Care Services
• Meri Timos, Central Office – Finance & Administration
• Wesley France, Central Office – Property Services
• Craig Hall, Sir William Hall Hostel
• Maria Ferenc, Vasey Brighton East
• Lydia Loprevite, Vasey House

Excellence in Safety:

• Sharon Wigney, Sir William Hall Hostel
• Santosh Poudel, Vasey Brighton East

Excellence in Continuous Improvement & Innovation:

• Linda Brownfield, ANZAC Hostel
• Laura Dean, ANZAC Hostel
• Santosh Poudel, Vasey Brighton East
• Linda D’Sylva, Vasey House

Excellence in Coaching and Support:

• Glennys, McKay, ANZAC Hostel
• Nadia, Wilson, Central Office – Aged Care Services
• Rose, Capp, Vasey Brighton East

Site Champion of the Year:

• Linda Brownfield, ANZAC Hostel
• Dave Angeles, RSL Park
• Amanda Whitford, RSL Park
• Alex Wilinski, Sir William Hall Hostel
• Jason Starr-Nolan, Vasey Brighton East

Vasey RSL Care Ambassador:

• Kim, Tully, Sir William Hall Hostel

Carer of the Year:

• Teagan Browne, Vasey Brighton East

Nurse of the Year:

• Selbin Chacko, RSL Park

Excellence In Leadership:

• Chris, Boyd, Vasey House

CEO Award:

• Chris, Boyd, Vasey House

Presentations

Keynote speaker for the day was Robyn Moore, a voice-over artist who has been the voice of commercials, radio series and cartoon characters. She has been voicing Blinky Bill for many years, and as National Patron for the Make-a-Wish Foundation, she makes Blinky Bill calls to brighten up the lives of sick children.

Robyn gave us a heart-felt presentation on the power of our words to make a difference in the lives of those we see each day – our families, colleagues and those we care for. She asked us, “Who’s coming home tonight?” (Is it “Tired and grumpy”?) and showed us how to change our attitude – we may still be tired but we can be “Tired and Happy” or “Tired and Satisfied”. Robyn shared her own experience of caring for two people in her life who had dementia, and talked about how a person with dementia has new experiences over and over again, suggesting that we learn from this: what if we took on “It’s always the First Time” for everything that we do?

Representing the War Widows Guild Victoria, Jill Wilmott (Victorian Administration Officer), and Daryl Hoffmann, the son of Mrs Connie Hoffmann who was one of the founders of the WWG, told us of the beginnings of the Guild and the impact it made. Jill gave us an insight into the life of a typical young woman – single, in love, engaged, married, a mother… and then widowed by the Second World War. Only a young child at the time, Daryl’s formative years were greatly impacted by the foundation of the War Widows Guild and told us of the amazing women who set it up, the experiences it gave him and the appreciation he still has for the support that it gave him and his mum, and the many other widows and their children around Australia.

A presentation by Wyn Roper from Quilts of Valour Australia gave us an insight into the care and support that their organisation provides to members of the Australian Defence Force. This was as a result of their founder hearing about quilts made by coalition personnel to “wrap the wounded in love, care and healing”. She was inspired to establish an organisation in Australia, which now has representatives in Victoria, NSW and Queensland.

Quilts of Valour Australia has supplied over 350 quilts to soldiers affected by war, and the immediate families of fallen solders, since 2012. They have also sent quilts to a military hospital in Germany, and to Afghanistan for service personnel and their families.

Wyn Roper from Quilts of Valour presented Vasey RSL Care with five beautiful quilts, one for each of our residential care homes, as dignity quilts to be draped over the body of the deceased as they leave for the final time, giving their family, friends and staff members the opportunity to honour them. The quilts were accepted by each of the Residential Managers to be taken back to their homes. Wyn is pictured here with Anna Borkowska, RM at Vasey Brighton East.

With the theme of ‘Our Heritage’, it was fascinating to hear from Janna about her background, her childhood spent partly in Siberia where her father was an engineer on a branch of the trans-siberian railway, her Jewish heritage and the monuments put up in her home town, which she didn’t understand until much later, the loss of a complete branch of her family, her move to Australia, and how her life and experiences have built on each other. Like so many Australians, she has her own unique heritage, but she shares the important values that underpin the organisation’s work.

Presentations from staff included Peter Howell’s account of his family’s journey to find their ancestor, killed in the Battle for the Western Front; the inaugural Vasey House Memory Walk by Linda D’Sylva and Louise Blake (Vasey House Bundoora); an interactive discussion on meaning and purpose in the lives of those in our care from Linda Brownfield (ANZAC Hostel); information about what home care means, by Raelene Passarini and Mishelle Ansems (Home Care Team); and finally from Dave Angeles (RSL Park Frankston South), who talked about discovering Australia’s heritage, as a recent arrival to this country.

This was a day of inspiration, bonding, celebration and fun.

“When we come together for this event, I feel so proud of what we are all doing to care for and serve those who have served our country,” says Janna.